21st Century Murdoch
by Demosthenes23
Summary: Note: This will likely only make sense if you've seen The Murdoch Effect web series. What would happen if George's punch didn't send Murdoch back to his proper time and he was stuck in 2012?
1. Paging Doctor Murdoch!

**Idea credit goes to Minerva Lily Gardner. Thanks a bunch girl!**

Tuesday, June 12th, 2012

I am extremely vexed at the moment. I discovered many hours ago and to my utter dismay that I am not capable of returning home! Previously all that was required for this timeline travel phenomenon was a good punch to the head by George. Somehow my lack of consciousness would trigger this event. I'm not going to pretend that I even remotely understood what was going on or how any of that could be possible. But no matter how improbable that all seemed, at least there were rules to it! Now nothing works! I goaded George into punching me again but all I received was a sharp pain in my jaw! He was willing to punch me a third time but Julia intervened, wanting to put a stop to what she considered to be 'mental'.

In my desperation I attempted to knock myself out by banging my head against the wall. I succeeded in this task but awoke to find this Julia hovering over me confusedly and concernedly. George threw his hands up claiming I was a 'whack job' and then left us there to go practice his shooting with Aunt Daisy. Julia insisted that I see a doctor and I of course listened to her as I was feeling light headed (and foolish) from my misadventure. What follows is a faithful narrative of that encounter.

"Hi," said Julia to an admittance nurse, "he needs to get his noggin checked out."

"Fill out these forms," she said plopping them in front of us.

We went over to sit on some very comfortable chairs to do as the woman said. It wasn't long before we ran into problems.

"What do you mean you don't know if you qualify for OHIP or not?" she exclaimed incredulously. "How can you be a cop and _not_ know that? And for that matter how can you be an Ontario citizen and not know that?" I didn't respond. "I'm gonna chalk this up to your little brain fart."

_Brain fart? What in the world?_

"I'm sorry," I said, "I don't mean to be an annoyance."

"It's all right, William," she said calming down. "If you're not sure then give me your health card and we'll go check with the nurse right now."

I fumbled around in my pockets for several moments but didn't find anything. Not that I was expecting to. I shrugged my shoulders at her.

"What!" she cried. "Did you get mugged or something?"

"Yes," I said eagerly, "that is exactly what happened."

"Don't tell Crabtree about that," she said smirking, "he'll never let you live it down."

"You have my word."

"Did you at least report the theft?"

"No, I haven't had a chance to do so yet."

"Okay, well I'll get on that first thing tomorrow. After all, it's bad for the biz when the boys in blue get shown up like that!"

I was worried about what would happen when my falsehood was found out but just said, "Yes, very bad for the biz."

Once the paperwork was done, albeit, rather spottily, we were allowed to see the doctor.

"Hello," he said, busy looking at some papers. "My name is doctor Holbrook. What seems to be the pro-" he looked up for the first time. My forehead still had some dried blood on it and there was a large lump there. "What happened?" he asked as he began poking it, making me wince.

"Well, doctor," I said, "I-"

"He tripped and hit his head," interrupted Julia.

"Hmm," murmured Holbrook, "if that's the case, it's strange that his injury is entirely situated on the front of his head. Why didn't you try to break your fall? Were your motor functions impaired in some way?"

"Well, doctor," I said, "I-"

"We were having a cold one after work when we noticed a suspect in the vicinity," interrupted Julia. "William here is a huge light weight and so when he chased after them he tripped and wasn't able to prevent his fall."

The doctor didn't say anything but pulled out a tiny cylindrical device and pressed a button on it.

"Oh my!" I exclaimed. "What a lovely day light in a box! It's very compact!"

The doctor and Julia shared a look and then stared at me and I realized my mistake. I looked away embarrassed.

"All right" said the doctor shining the light in my eyes, "how are you feeling William?"

"I feel perfectly fine, doctor." Which was far from the truth but I didn't like this place and wanted to leave as soon as possible. It smelled terrible, there were needles everywhere and there were even a few people walking around with their bare buttocks exposed!

"Your pupil responses are normal but your outburst has me a little concerned. Can you tell me what your full name is?"

"William Murdoch."

"And the year?"

"2012," I responded, getting nervous with this line of questioning.

"And who is the Prime Minister?" I was certain that I would be found out as an imposter in this timeline for not knowing this. The doctor sighed. "It's truly disturbing how few people know such a basic thing anymore." Turning to Julia he asked, "Was he unconscious at any point?"

"Yes but only for a few moments."

"Well, in that case you may have experienced a concussion." I looked at him blankly. "This means you'll need to stay awake for the night to make sure you don't lapse into a coma."

I assumed that this must be an undesirable state for one to be in.

"Anyways," said the doctor, "I'm going to get a nurse to clean your wound up for you and then you'll need to stay overnight for observation."

Holbrook led us to the admittance desk, talked to a nurse there briefly and then went back into the examination room. Once the nurse had me set up in a shared room, Julia tried to determine why I had done this to myself. I saw no reason for deception, after all, I had almost told her previously that day.

"I was trying to get back home."

"Excuse me?" she said, eyebrows raised slightly.

"This is going to be difficult to understand, Julia, in fact, I barely understand it myself, but I am not from here."

"Yeah, you told me as much before. Raised by Jesuit Priests or something."

"No, I mean I'm from another time, the year 1899 to be precise."

She burst out laughing. "William, you are the strangest man I've ever met but I can't believe you'd think I'd fall for that!"

"I assure you, Julia, I'm not trying to make you fall for anything. In the Toronto of 1899 I am also a detective and I was investigating the Grace Crandall kidnapping as well. Unfortunately George knocked me out and I ended up here, investigating the same crime."

When she realized I wasn't joking her eyebrows arced to the point of dislocation and she just stared at me open mouthed for several moments. "Right, you must have hit your head harder than I thought!"

I didn't see the point in arguing with her so I said, "Yes, maybe you are right."

"Well, I should get going," she said eyeing me strangely, "I'm really tired. I guess having a gun shoved in one's face tends to tire a girl out, ya know?"

"Of course."

Since then I have been pacing the room, to the annoyance of the other patients and trying to figure out a way to get back home. But I can't come up with a solution! I don't know what I'm going to do now! Am I stuck here forever? Will my loved ones back in 1899 ever see me again? Or will my disappearance baffle the constabulary for years to come? I pray that I will find the answer to my current predicament. At least my faith (and this method of writing) is still familiar to me. If I lose that, all hope is lost.


	2. Jilliam All The Way

**Wednesday, June 13th, 2012**

Julia came by to see how I was doing the next morning but didn't stay long.

"How are you feeling today, William?" asked Julia.

"Much better, thank you," I said, propped up in my hospital bed. "Though I am feeling foolish still."

"Yeah, that was a pretty bizarro thing for you to do." I stared at her blankly. "It was very odd that you knocked yourself out like that."

"Oh, yes, I don't know what I was thinking."

She glanced at me furtively for a moment. "Do you remember what you were saying last night? About where you come from?"

I looked away and said, "It would be best that we forget that ever happened. Something else I'm feeling foolish about."

Julia laughed a little. "That was some crazy stuff you were rambling on about. I'm not really into the whole sci-fi thing myself."

"Sci-fi?" I thought about that for a moment. "As in science fiction?"

She laughed longer this time and then stared at me curiously. "Time travel sure would explain a lot though. It's too bad you don't have a time machine, then I might have actually believed you!"

I smiled at that. "Yes, if only that were the case." Then I'd be able to get back home.

The same doctor from the previous night came in then. "Good morning," he glanced at a chart, "William." He pulled out the tiny day light in a box again and shone it in my eyes. "So William, I'm a bit concerned about your mental state. Someone informed a nurse of your conversation last night and I read the report a few minutes ago." I looked at Julia and she shrugged her shoulders. "Let's see here, you claimed to be from the year 1899 and that someone named George knocked you out and you ended up here. Do you deny saying these things?"

"No, sir, I do not." Julia sighed slightly then.

"I'm afraid you might have sustained some brain damage," said the doctor. "We'll need to do further testing to be certain. I wouldn't worry about anything just yet."

Before I could say or do anything else the doctor flashed me a smile that did nothing to instill a sense of courage in me, left the room and was quickly out of sight.

"Thank you for not informing anyone of our conversation last night."

"Don't mention it, William. I might be a snitch for my job but I have principles the rest of the time. So who do you think ratted you out?"

I looked around at all the other patients present and said, "I believe the old woman across from us is the culprit."

Julia smirked at that. "And how did you come to that conclusion so quickly?"

"She was the only one who didn't complain when I was pacing yesterday even though I could tell that it was bothering her. No doubt she was saving her revenge for a more potent form. Also, her hearing is far better than one might think for someone her age."

"I'll take your word for it," she said smiling. "Well, I really have to get going now but I'll stop by after work."

"I look forward to our next meeting," I said also smiling.

She nodded and left.

* * *

About a half an hour later, they brought me to something called an MRI machine. What a wondrous device!

"And how will this device be able to see inside my head? Are you going to use X-rays?"

The technician gave me an unamused look and said, "MRI stands for magnetic resonance imaging. Does that sound like it has anything to do with X-rays, genius?"

"No, sir, it does not but surely the principles are similar."

"Yeah Einstein, way to point out the obvious."

Einstein? Who or what is that?

Rather than argue with the unpleasant man I lay down on the white board and the technician pressed a button which then caused the whole thing to move into the narrow cavity. It was an unsettling experience for me but I bore it without complaint, even when the loud noise started up. It didn't hurt me so I assumed that was a normal sound.

Within ten minutes the ordeal was over and a nurse took me back to my room and served me some breakfast. It was the most dreadful thing I had ever tasted! Even worse than Miss Kitchen's cooking! I quickly gave up trying to eat it, the taste making my stomach turn.

* * *

Many hours later the doctor came back. "Well," he looked at a chart, "William, your brain seems to be fine. I guess you just got a little carried away last night." His demeanour changed then and he said, "There is however another concern."

"Yes?" Now what?

"We've been having some problems with your paperwork. Certain things aren't checking out. Due to the nature of your trauma, it's understandable that you might have gotten mixed up. Nurse Joy is going to help you go through it again to make sure we didn't overlook something before...well, it's best not to discuss such unpleasant things yet. Anyways, she'll be by shortly and hopefully we'll be able to sort this out."

The doctor flashed me another smile and was out the door.

Oh no!, I thought. It was imperative that I got out of there right now before I was detained indefinitely. If the authorities were ever made aware that my name and everything else about me didn't check out, they would surely want to determine who I really was. They probably would consider me to be a confidence trickster or some other sort of criminal that required an alias. The last thing I wanted to do was break the law but if I was captured I would never be able to figure out a way to get back home.

I went into the washroom and quickly got changed into the only clothing that I owned. It wasn't long before there was knocking at the door and a woman speaking.

"Mr. Murdoch, it's Nurse Joy. How long do you think you're going to be?"

"A very long time," I said loudly. "The food here didn't agree with me."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Well, I'll come back in a little while to see how you're doing."

"Sounds fine."

I listened closely by the door and heard footsteps walking away. I counted them out and knew she hadn't left the room. I waited like that for several minutes before the familiar click clack sound of her shoes became a distant sound. I slowly opened the door and didn't see anyone, then I stealthily crept up to the room's entrance and scouted out the area. When I saw it was all clear, I hurried down the hallway, past the admittance desk and then entered a side staircase. Other people came by that way before I reached the ground floor but they paid me no notice. Finally I reached my destination and I was free, for the time being. However, now the question was where I should go next. Only one place came to mind and it was probably the worst place for me to go right now. But go I did.

* * *

It took many hours to get back to the precinct. At first I simply walked as I didn't own a vehicle like Julia and everyone else seemed to. And even if I had access to one, I wouldn't have known what to do. Eventually I spotted a streetcar. It was different looking than what was present in 1899 but still used an electrified track the same way. I ran over to it and got on.

"Good afternoon, sir," I said, "you have a lovely vehicle."

The conductor grunted at me so I just walked past him and towards the back.

"Hey buddy!" he yelled. "You gonna pay or what?"

I searched my pockets as I headed back to the irate man. I already knew that I wouldn't find anything but tried vainly anyways. When I came up empty handed the conductor continued to yell at me and other passengers joined in until I gave up and got off. Why is everyone so angry here?

I started walking again and came across a vehicle with the word taxi on it. I saw some people get in and then heard them give the driver directions. There were other taxi's around but I didn't bother trying to use this service as I was fairly certain it would also require payment. In the end I had to walk the entire way back. I got lost several times and found it very difficult to get directions from the people passing by. It was hard to believe that even though there were many times more people than I was accustomed to, I had never felt quite so lonely in my entire life. However, there were a few good souls amongst the crowd who didn't appear to be in such a rush and who were willing to help me out.

A few times I came across police officers and made sure to make myself scarce. I had no idea how soon after my break out the cops would be looking for me or if indeed they would at all. But considering the modern cameras they had all over the hospital, they would likely have access to a picture of me. So if they were looking for me, it was best not to take any unnecessary risks. I wondered why anyone would choose the life of a criminal, it was not desirable in the least. I was constantly stressed out and had an almost overwhelming urge to turn myself in.

By the time I made it back to the precinct, I was very hungry as the last thing I had eaten were some donuts the previous day. I hoped to find more of them as they were the most delicious thing I had ever eaten. But unfortunately there were none to be found. There was however a large rectangular box that I later discovered was called a vending machine. Once again, a payment was necessary to access the food within. In my frustration I shook the machine, hoping to dislodge something from the metal trappings.

"Whoa, whoa!" exclaimed George. "What do ya think you're doing buddy? This thing's been broke more times than I can count cause of manhandling like that!" He reached into his pocket and fished out a small golden object. "Here," he said tossing it to me, "if you're so damn desperate for some freaking snickers then by all means, it's on me!"

I examined the shiny coin to find what appeared to be a loon on one side and an old woman on the other. I must have stared at it for too long because George lost his patience with me again.

"What are you _doing_? Did you knock your brains loose like Wile E. Coyote?" I simply stared at him for I didn't know how to respond. "Oh for Christ's sake!" he shouted, grabbing the coin from my fingers and inserting it into a little slot on the machine. George quickly punched some buttons and one of the food items fell down. I hunched over to pick up something called a Mars bar. What a strange name! Why would they name their food after a planet?

I quickly opened it and took a bite. I was wrong about the donuts. This was even more wonderful tasting! I must have smiled oddly then for George laughed at me, muttered something that sounded like 'freak of nature' and then left. I devoured the whole bar and then found myself very thirsty. Luckily I had previously noted a drinking apparatus of some sort in the lobby of the building. I accessed the elevator and headed back down to the ground floor. When the doors opened, I came face to face with Julia.

"William!" she said taken aback, "what are you doing here?"

"The doctor said I was fine," I said as I stepped out.

"Yeah but how did you get here? You didn't have any money on you."

"I walked."

Her eyes widened at that. "But that must have taken forever! Why didn't you call me? I would have picked you up!"

"I did not know your number."

"Oh, right," she said looking sheepish. "Well just give me your phone and I'll give it to you right now."

"I don't own a phone."

Julia rolled her eyes at that. "Why am I not surprised? I'm really starting to wonder if your story might have been true after all." I looked at her expectantly and she started laughing again. "I'm just joking man!" She quieted down and then touched my forehead. "At least that's gone down a bit. How do you feel?"

In truth it was still painful but somehow when she touched it, it didn't hurt as badly. I was thrilled by her touch but tried not to show it. However she seemed to notice anyways.

"Hey, I'm off in like half an hour, what do you say to getting a cold one with me and then later going to see West Side Story?"

"That sounds delightful," I said smiling broadly.

"Great!" she said returning the gesture.

We headed back up to the fifth floor, my thirst completely forgotten as it had been replaced by another sensation, one that I do not feel appropriate to talk about even here.

On the way up she said, "So I put out some feelers for your wallet but so far we haven't managed to track down any recent credit card charges under your name." She looked at me closely then, "The strange thing was that we couldn't find _any _record of any charges _ever _being made." I opened my mouth to speak but she smiled and said, "Let me guess, you don't use credit cards either."

"I admit to being mystified by them."

Julia laughed again as we reached our destination.

* * *

A cold one turned out to be beer. I have never been fond of alcohol, especially such a disgusting tasting type but didn't mind indulging when in Julia's presence. What I did mind was the noise emanating from some unknown source. Calling it music would be far too generous in my opinion. It was very brash and unpleasant and I can't fathom why anyone would want to listen to such racket. But that was all the proprietor seemed to want to play. I did my best to converse with Julia but found it to be extremely difficult. She must have sensed my discomfort.

"Oh man, I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed. "I'm such a dumbass sometimes! Of course you wouldn't like this place! See I come here all the time and I didn't even think twice about it. Let's go someplace more your speed, shall we?"

"Yes, please."

She paid for our beers and then we left.

"Why do you like such a dreadful place, Julia?"

"Well, it's a great place to meet guys."

"Oh," I said taking in her meaning. I was dismayed to think about how many men she had been with but endeavoured not to judge her too harshly, for this behaviour seemed to be disturbingly typical of this time and place. I observed plenty of shocking behaviour on my walk back from the hospital. Some of which involved members of the same sex! The values that I hold so dear do not seem to apply here. If I'm going to be stuck here, I will have to learn to get used to it.

* * *

We went to a nice, relatively quiet place that Julia called a family restaurant. And she was quite right for there were many children present in the vicinity. Several of them were hunched over little rectangular devices that made strange noises every time they pushed a button. I thought it was rather disrespectful of them to be ignoring their parents like that but if they didn't mind, who was I to question it?

We ordered some food and drink and then got to talking about ourselves.

"So Julia, how long have you been a detective?"

"Uh, about ten years I'd say. What about you?"

"About the same for me as well."

"I've been meaning to ask you this, William, but where did you transfer from?"

I wasn't sure how to respond but I did the best I could. "I previously was stationed in New Brunswick, in a little town outside of Moncton."

"Is that the same place your Jesuit Priests come from?"

"Yes, indeed it is."

"And your family? Are they still out there as well?"

"No, my father is out West in British Colombia and my mother died many years ago."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Thank you, Julia. And your family, are they well?"

"My mother died long ago and my dad is dating another blonde bimbo and they're vacationing in Fiji right now. My sister is in New York city and she's just recently made it big time as a lead journalist for the New York Times."

"I'm sorry for your loss as well but I'm glad to hear that your father and Ruby are doing well."

Julia looked at me incredulously and I realized my mistake. "How did you know her name?" she asked slowly, suspiciously.

"You mentioned it yesterday, don't you remember?"

"No, I don't," she replied getting more suspicious. "You're not like some crazy virtual stalker who facebooked me in order to pretend to have the same interests as me, are you?"

There were so many things about that question that I didn't understand so I played it safe.

"No, of course not Julia!" I said apologetically. "The only people I stalk are criminals."

Then she laughed and said, "I believe it! Knowing you, I bet you don't even know how to use a computer!"

I forced a laugh as best I could for I didn't know what she was talking about and it seemed to be an appropriate thing to do. Luckily our drinks came so she didn't have time to notice that my laugh was not sincere. The wine she had ordered for us was much better than the beer and soon as I feeling more comfortable in this place than I had ever been. It certainly didn't help matters that I was consuming this on an empty stomach. By the time the food came I was positively merry and I cannot recall now what was said in the interim.

* * *

An hour later we went to go see this West Side Story. I must admit that it wasn't what I had been expecting. It was nothing like Romeo and Juliet. Whether it was the wine or something else, I found myself quite captivated by the performances and didn't even mind when the two star crossed lovers got rather inappropriate with one another. I was also pleasantly surprised half way through that Julia was holding my hand. I don't know when she started to but it didn't matter, it was wonderful all the same.

"Did you like it William," she asked me after the show.

"Yes, I was surprised by how much I did."

"I had a great time tonight."

"Yes, as did I."

We stared at one another for awhile.

"You know, it's late, how 'bout I give you a ride home."

I didn't respond and I dreaded what I would say next. Understandably she mistook my silence.

"Hey don't get me wrong man! I'm not gonna try anything with you if that's what you're afraid of! I just think you've done more than your fair share of walking today."

I wasn't sure how to avoid telling her that I had made up my address when filling out the paper work at the hospital and that I in fact had no place to call my own. So I acted impulsively, I grabbed her and kissed her. At first she was surprised but then she responded actively and I found myself quite enjoying the experience. It was both very similar and very different to how my Julia would have kissed me. This Julia was doing things with her tongue that I had never experienced before and it seemed to only enhance the pleasure of the situation.

Eventually she broke away and breathed, "So I guess we're going to my place."

* * *

At her place things got a little out of hand.

We were horizontal on the couch and she whispered, "I'll be right back, I'm just gonna go get something."

"What?"

She just smiled and disappeared into the washroom. She came back with a little silver packet.

"What is that?" I asked.

She laughed and said, "The way things are headed, we're gonna need this soon."

I understood her meaning then and sat up. I had just gotten a terrible sense of Deja Vu. Many years ago I had been in a similar situation with my Julia and this made me realize that I had almost made a terrible mistake. If I had let this continue would it be like I had replaced my Julia with this version? And if I ever make it back home, would I be able to look at her the same way?

"What's wrong?" she said, smile faltering. "Too much too soon?"

"Yes, something like that."

"Yeah, sorry about that, I tend to get carried away."

We remained like that awkwardly for several moments until I broke the silence.

"So what is this contraption?" I asked pointing to a large rectangular glass picture frame.

Julia looked where I was pointing and laughed again. "Oh William, you're so funny!" She picked up a smaller rectangular device, pointed it at the frame and all of a sudden it lit up! What appeared to be a baseball game was playing across the screen.

"Oh my!" I exclaimed. "This is wonderful!"

"You're a Blue Jays fan, I take it?" she said laughing.

"Oh, yes," I said wondering why she was talking about birds.

"Do you wanna watch the game then?"

"Okay, that sounds nice."

She sat back down beside me and we watched the game for a bit. Before I knew it, it was morning and I awoke to find Julia's head propped against my shoulder.


	3. The Unusual Suspect

**Thursday, June 14th, 2012**

"Julia," I said shaking her shoulder gently.

"Hmm," she said opening one eye sleepily. "Is it morning already?"

"Yes."

"What time is it?" she said looking across me at the digital clock. "Oh crap! We're gonna be late for work!"

She jumped up and ran to the washroom and turned on some contraption, water started pouring forth from a nozzle. "You wanna join me," she asked coyly and winked.

"No, thank you Julia but it was kind of you to offer."

"Suit yourself," she said closing the door.

While she was in there, I took the liberty of writing the most recent events down for I was unsure when I would next get a chance to. I find that chronicling my time here has made it easier to cope with the immense changes all around me and it helps me sort through the multitude of feelings I'm experiencing at any given moment.

When she was finished she said I'd have to have a quick shower or we'd definitely be late. It was easy enough to figure out how to use and I was delighted with the sensation of falling water on my body. It was like being in the rain but without my clothes on, something that I would never dream of doing. Well, it's possible I may have done so once or twice as a babe.

The only shampoo available to me was something called L'Oréal. To my knowledge that was not a real French word. The closest I could come up with was Auréale which meant halo. What this had to do with angels I couldn't say but used it anyways as I was supposed to be done soon.

By the time we arrived at the precinct we were fifteen minutes late as the traffic had been horrendous. I've never experienced such a dismal display of urban planning! How could the city developers let it get this bad? As well, there were fumes everywhere and I wondered for the first time what the state of the environment was in this time and place. From the little I had seen so far, it appeared that we were well on the path for destruction. If only Pendrick's electric car plan had not been ruined, maybe things would be very different? However, to put the blame fully on Henry Ford was not fair by a long shot.

"Where the hell have you two been?" asked a grumpy George.

"Did someone get up on the wrong side of the bed today?" said Julia.

"Funny, Jules," he said sarcastically. "The only reason I give a rats ass is cause a stiff was just called in. Are you guys coming or what?"

He didn't wait for a response. Instead he walked straight past me. Then he stopped abruptly and whirled around.

"Wait a minute!" he exclaimed. "I get it now!" Julia and I shared a look. "You two spent the night together didn't you? That's why poindexter here smells like your shampoo and why he's still wearing the same freaking suit!" He started laughing uproariously then and in between his fits of laughter he managed to choke out, "Oh my _God_, Jules! You're like a magnet for the biggest freaks of nature!"

"Are you done yet?" she asked in an annoyed sounding voice. "I thought you were in a rush to get somewhere?"

"Yeah lets go," he said as he wiped the tears from his eyes. "But you guys take your own car, I wouldn't want to interrupt anything."

"Crabtree," said Julia dangerously, "you're really starting to piss me off today."

I felt I should say something in this situation.

"Yeah George, you're being an asshole." This was a word I had picked up on the streets. I hoped I had used it correctly.

They both stared at me and it was Julia's turn to laugh. "I never thought I'd hear _you_ say something like that!"

"Come on then," said George grumpily again.

* * *

I knelt down beside the body of the middle aged woman to get a better look at her. It didn't take long before I realized I had seen something similar back in 1899. The others were surprised by my diagnosis for I had just described the cause of death of several people throughout Toronto. However, the details had never been publicized and it had taken days for them to piece it together. It had been so difficult to determine what had happened to the other people because the method with which it was done was not a common one in this day and age. Needless to say, they both looked at me rather suspiciously, George much more so than Julia but even so, it was not pleasant.

Back at the precinct after I had snuck into an office in order to learn how to use a computer in private, I overhead a conversation between them that was rather unsettling.

"Okay Jules, that was seriously weird! How the hell did he know all that?"

"I don't know. Maybe he's just super observant? Or maybe he's just so old fashioned that he'd heard of something like that before?"

"Look, I know you like the guy but what do you really know about him?"

"Come _on_ Crabtree, like he's the psycho serial killer! He wouldn't hurt a fly."

"But how do you _know_ that, Jules?"

"I just _do_ okay? And besides which, he was with me last night so he couldn't have done it!"

"Unless you two were going at it the whole night, you can't possibly know that!"

She laughed without mirth. "Fine. Say William is this psycho, why would he make us suspicious of him? Why would he point himself out to us?"

"You know how these psychos operate! They love to mess with our heads! I bet this whole simple minded thing is a total act!"

"It's not him man so just drop it!"

"No, I won't drop it Jules! I think this guy is a serious whack job and I'm gonna investigate him if I damn well please!"

"You're impossible Crabtree!"

"You're just upset cause now you're wondering if maybe he played you this whole time! I mean, think about it Jules! The guy pops up out of nowhere and then insinuates himself in our lives! And then as soon as he proves himself useful, he goes and kills his next victim so we wouldn't suspect him! I mean, why the hell did he bash his head against the wall? I bet he was counting on you to take care of him so that he could use you as his alibi!"

There was silence and then I heard footsteps and pretended to be occupied with the computer, hoping whoever it was wouldn't notice me there. Luckily for me they didn't. However, now there were a whole slew of other things to worry about. If George continued with his investigation, surely he was going to find out that I effectively didn't exist? And once that happened, I would become their number one suspect. If I tried to run away they'd absolutely think it was me, but if I stayed, how was I going to get myself out of this mess? The answer was so glaringly obvious that I couldn't believe it hadn't occurred to me right away. I would have to catch the real killer before I myself was imprisoned. This of course was nearly impossible for we had no leads and I assumed a computer search would not take very long to complete.

I quickly headed back to Julia's cubicle so that I could take another, closer look at all the information available to us. She smiled at me but I could tell that she was somewhat taking George's words to heart. It pained me to see her doubt me like this but what could I do? I couldn't very well try to reassure her without admitting to the fact that I had overheard the conversation.

"I'd like to take another look at the files if you don't mind."

"Be my guest. Maybe a fresh pair of eyes is exactly what we need."

I sat down beside her and we poured through the documents for about half an hour when all of a sudden George came bursting into the room, glaring at me angrily.

"The jigs up scumbag!" he yelled at me.

"Crabtree, what the hell?" said Julia.

"Yes, what seems to be the problem, George?" I inquired politely.

"Oh don't give me that crap! You know damn well what the problem is, you psychopathic bastard!"

"How many times do I gotta tell you that it isn't him?"

"Oh, it's him all right, Jules! This jackass is definitely the killer! _This_ William Murdoch isn't a real freaking person!"

She stared wide eyed at me briefly and then looked to George. "Wha-what do you mean?"

"I looked up all the detective William Murdoch's in the country and none of them are this guy!"

"Maybe you made a mistake and just missed him?"

"No way I screwed up! On top of all that, his name and picture had been flagged by the hospital as a person of interest! He committed fraud on his paper work and then he bailed before they could look into it fully!"

Julia stood up then and backed away from me, lips tightly wedged together. It looked like she might cry. My heart broke then and I had to say something.

"It's not what you think!" I pleaded with her, ignoring George all together. "I can explain everything!"

"Save it for someone who gives a crap!" shouted George. "You're going down for this no matter what! I'm personally gonna see to that!"

Then he grabbed me by the shoulder roughly and led me to the interrogation room.

"Why'd you do it?" George asked gruffly as he threw me onto the chair. "Why'd you kill all those people?"

"I assure you," I said more calmly than I felt, "this is all simply a big misunderstanding."

He was deaf to my plea. "Did you think using such an obscure form of murder was gonna save you from getting caught? Is that why you killed them like that? Or do you just enjoy making us look stupid?"

"George-"

"For the last freaking time, don't freaking call me that! Give the clueless thing a goddamn rest! It's over you piece of trash!"

Needless to say it was a rather surreal experience for me to be here on the opposite side of the table getting verbally abused by no less than George. I wondered then if Julia was on the other side of the two way glass witnessing my disgrace.

"I can prove my innocence. Let me help you catch the real killer."

"Did you enjoy impersonating an officer of the law? Well, did you punk?"

I didn't see the point in answering for he wasn't listening to anything I had to say anyways.

"Is that how you wanna play it? Fine by me!"

He rushed at me, knocking the chair over, and pinned me against the wall. Before he could do anything else, Julia burst into the room and yelled at him.

"Crabtree stop! Get a hold of yourself! You've already gotten into enough trouble for police brutality! Do you want to get suspended again?"

George released me after a few moments.

"Thank you Julia," I said.

She ignored me and said, "Go take a breather until you cool off and maybe I'll let you back in here."

He stormed out of there and slammed the door as he left.

"Sit," she said sharply. I did as she commanded. "You said you could explain yourself, so explain. I'm all ears."

"I might have exaggerated about that ever so slightly." She was not amused so I continued speaking. "I already told you part of my story that night at the hospital but-"

She started laughing then but it was far from the joyful laughter that I had come to love so much about both Julia's. "Are you seriously sticking with that story? Do you really think I'm that stupid?"

"No, I don't think you're stupid, Julia, I never have."

"Who are you really?" she said softer. "Just tell me now and you'll save yourself a lot of hardship later on."

"I never lied to you about my identity. I am who I say I am."

"How can you continue to claim that when there are no records of your existence!"

An idea occurred to me then. "I'm not so sure about that."

"Oh I'm gonna love hearing this. Go on."

"George only looked for recent individuals with the name William Murdoch. He didn't check the records back in-"

"Don't even say it man!" she exclaimed throwing her hands up. "Are you totally insane or just completely delusional?" I didn't respond to that. She seemed to consider me closely then and I didn't want to interrupt her train of thought. "I must be just as insane as you," she muttered and then left the room.

I sat there anxiously, hoping George didn't come back before Julia did because I much preferred dealing with her than him. She was at least somewhat reasonable. I got my wish and twenty minutes later she returned looking like she had seen a ghost. Julia put a key in a little box on the wall, opened it and flipped a switch inside. Then she placed a piece of paper on the table and I picked it up.

It was a print out of a newspaper article dating back to June 14th, 1899. My picture was present and other than the hair style, I looked identical. The article detailed the mysterious disappearance of a detective Murdoch during the Grace Crandall investigation. It even mentioned the names of my friends and colleagues, which included Julia herself. Apparently she was so upset by my disappearance that she spoke to the papers about me and so there were several quotes of hers present about the type of man I was and hopeful that I'd be found soon. It pained me greatly to read such things as I hated to think about how much she must be suffering right now but there was nothing I could do about it.

"You faked this somehow, didn't you?" she asked shakily.

"No, Julia, I did not. I've never seen this article before."

"But it _can't_ be real, it just can't be!"

"Why not?"

"Because it's totally insane, that's why! How can you be _here_?"

"I don't know Julia but I am. You're just as much of an anomaly as me."

She closed her eyes and said, "What do you mean?"

"The Julia in the article is another version of you."

She opened them wide and said, "No, her name was Garland."

"Yes, but that's only because that Julia was married."

"Why would a married woman go on and on about her past colleague? I mean, it sounds like-wait a minute! Were you two lovers?"

"Yes, for a time."

"You know, this is totally insane but I gotta admit that it makes a certain amount of sense! I mean, I swore that I had met you before! Do you think it's because of your intimate relationship to that Julia?"

"I hadn't thought of that but it's just as possible as everything else that's happened so far."

"Holy crap man! This is unreal!" Then she plopped herself down and closed her eyes again. I gave her as much time as she needed to come to terms with everything. She opened them and said, "Look, William, even if this is all true, it doesn't change anything. I can't very well use this information to clear your name. I mean, even if I hadn't turned off the tapes so that this insanity wouldn't be on record, I still couldn't have used it. I mean, other than a way to make a bid for the insanity plea that is." She smirked then, "But then I would have had to join you at the asylum."

"I realized as much, Julia. The only way to clear my name is to solve this case. Unfortunately George is not going to let me anywhere near the files. I'm afraid this is going to be up to you."

She nodded and said, "As I'm sure you're aware, I can't stop Crabtree from detaining you for twenty four hours. So before he comes back, if you have any weird, unexplained stuff on your person, it would be wise of you to hand it over right now."

I fished around within the inside pocket of my suit and removed my journal entries. She looked at them quizzically but then when she heard someone approaching, she shoved them inside her own suit pocket. It was a good thing too for it was Crabtree.

"Jules, what the hell? Why is the camera turned off?"

"It is?" she said pretending to be mystified. "Huh? Would you look at that."

He glared at both of us. "What's going on here? What are you two up to?"

"Would you relax Crabtree? Nothing's going on. You're free to put him behind bars for all I care."

"That's my girl," he said slapping her on the back, "it's good to have you back!"

"What did I tell you about doing that Crabtree?" she said annoyed. "I_ really_ don't like it!"

"Oh yeah," he said sheepishly, "sorry Jules. Anyways, let's put this bastard where he belongs!"

"Lead the way," she said, grabbing me by the arm and winking at me when George wasn't looking.

"Oye there!" exclaimed Brackenreid as we marched past his cell. "Are me bleedin' eyes deceivin' me or are you lot sendin' one of your own to the gallows? There's just no bond of brotherly love these days. What a cryin' shame."

"Can it Brackenreid!' shouted George, kicking the bars. "I'm tired of listening to your dumb accent! Learn how to talk like a normal human being why don't you?"

"That's racism, that is," he said smirking. "I outta report you to your superior. I'm sure they'd be very interested in what I had to say. Don't you agree Jules?"

She ignored him and they continued moving me again.

"Oh don't be like that darlin'. No hard feelings, love, it was just business," he said winking and making his familiar clicking sound. "My girl wasn't actually going to shoot you, now were you Gracie Poo?"

Emily was in the cell next to him and she said, "Leave me out of this! I wish I never had met you! My life would rock without you!"

"Wait just one bleedin' minute! Let's get this straight dearest! If anyone's to blame for this cock up, it's you! It wasn't my idea to kidnap the blonde tart!"

"You think whatever the hell you want, _honey_! I hate everything about you and I refuse to talk to you ever again!" Then she turned away from him and faced the wall.

He mumbled something that sounded like twit but which might have been something slightly different. "So what did your copper friend do?" asked Brackenreid. "Did he poorly reference another Eastwood line?" Then he laughed for several moments. "But seriously, what gives?"

Everyone ignored him and they placed me in the cell next to Henry.

"All right Henry?" I said and he scowled at me.

Crabtree looked at me, smirked and then left. Julia and I shared a look and then she too left.

"Come on now my friend," he called, "please enlighten us! I've got nuffin else to bleedin' do if sunshine here won't talk to us anymore!" I didn't respond. "Oh who needs you anyways! I can entertain meself just fine!"

And then he proceeded to sing pub songs very poorly until the others were hollering at him to shut up. After awhile I barely noticed because I was too focused on solving the case and winning my freedom. I don't mean to brag but I have a very good memory and I more or less recalled what I had read in the files. I went to my special brainstorming place using the method I had learned from the Jesuits in order to review everything from a different perspective. I can't say how long I was in this state as there were no clocks in the holding area. What I can say is this: it had all been in vain, I couldn't come up with anything useful. I just hadn't had enough time to comb through the files properly. It looked like my fate was completely and utterly in Julia's hands.


	4. There's More Than One of Everything

After my failed attempt at trying to solve the case, there was little else for me to do. Brackenreid continued to question me from time to time but for the most part nothing happened for many hours. Julia came to see me again at around two in the afternoon judging by her watch. We had a whispered conversation so as to avoid having the others overhear.

"What have you, Julia?"

"Not much I'm afraid. I'm sorry."

"It's quite all right, Julia. I'm sure you are doing your best and that you will find the real culprit in due time."

She smiled. "I'm flattered that you think I'm that capable. We haven't managed to even determine a suspect yet. I mean, it's really quite strange when you think about it. There's no fingerprints or fibres left at any of the crime scenes and no hairs or other body fluids so we can't run DNA."

"DNA?"

"Oh right, sorry, I forgot. DNA is like the instruction manual to every living thing and every person has a unique pattern just like their fingerprints."

"Oh my! When was this discovered?"

"Not until the 1950s."

So if I ever get back home, I probably won't live to see this discovery.

"Anyways, it's like this guy is a ghost. Like he's some sort of demonic spirit on a rampage."

"I never thought I'd hear you say something like that Julia."

"Yeah, I don't really believe in that stuff but sometimes you gotta wonder."

"What now?"

"I'm gonna keep working on this, who knows, maybe I'll get lucky?"

"I greatly appreciate everything you're doing for me Julia."

"Don't mention it, William. And don't worry too much, we can't keep you in here forever without actual proof. It's all extremely circumstantial at the moment. But it would have been nice if the killer had left even one fingerprint behind. Then we could have run them against yours and proven your innocence."

"Yes, that is a pity."

There was silence for a moment. "So, I read your journal."

"I thought you might."

"You're not mad?"

"Journals are meant to be read."

"Okay then," she said smiling. "The Mars bar part was my favourite."

"I'm glad you found it amusing."

"Wile E. Coyote is a cartoon character who ran into walls trying to catch the roadrunner."

"Cartoon?"

She laughed. "A moving drawing."

"Oh, I think I see."

"Anyways, I'm going to hold on to it for now but I'll get you some more paper and a pen so that you can continue writing this. But then you'll need to give any new entries back to me for safe keeping."

"Of course and thank you, Julia."

"Whatever I can do to help you cope with this culture shock, William. But ultimately I hope you figure out a way to get back to your time...and your Julia."

"Julia," I said slowly, "I never-"

She put her hand up to stop me. "It's okay, William, I get it. She's the love of your life. Maybe you'll work things out someday. You're a great guy, you deserve to be happy. And hey, they say everyone's got a double. Maybe I'll meet my own William some day."

"Yes, I hope you are right."

* * *

Sometime in the evening George came waltzing into the holding area like he couldn't be happier.

"What's got you in such a right as rain mood?" inquired Brackenreid. "Did you finally come to terms with your homosexuality?"

"Not today Brackenreid," he responded gayly.

"Good for you, my son, you're finally learning to control that nasty temper of yours. Maybe it'll 'elp you find a nice bloke to settle down with."

George ignored him and marched over to my cell, smiling widely. I found this to be much more unsettling than his usual brusk temper.

"I just thought you'd like to know that you're not getting out of here anytime soon."

"If you hold me without just cause, you'll be breaking the law, George."

"That won't be an issue anymore. See, another body turned up, an older one this time and we found something very interesting. It seems you were sloppy when you were first getting started with your...extracurricular activities. You left a print behind."

I was instantly relieved by this news for I knew the fingermark wouldn't match my own. Now I would have proof of my innocence and be allowed to leave.

"You must be totally insane to be smiling right now buddy."

"You said you found a fingermark but I know for a fact that it won't match me."

"Is that so?" he said smirking. "Funny then that it did."

"Wha-What?" I choked out bewildered. "You must have made a mistake!"

"Hey, I just run a program, the computer makes the decision. And it's telling me that there's a 99.6% match to the thumb print I took from you earlier."

What was going on here? I knew I couldn't have been the culprit. Was George so hell bent on catching the killer that he would tamper with evidence?

"Yeah, I thought that might take the smug smile off your face. I'm gonna sleep good tonight." He laughed and then left me standing there incredibly disturbed.

"I am truly shocked my friend," called Brackenreid from his cell. "Whoever would 'ave thought that dirty coppers still existed?" Then he too laughed and I tried my best to ignore him.

Julia came in soon after, grim faced.

"Was he telling the truth, Julia? About the fingermark?"

"I'm afraid so," she said, sounding exhausted.

"But how can this be?"

"I don't know, William, not unless you really are killing these people."

"I swear to you that I am not."

"And I believe you but I can't argue with cold hard facts."

I lost some faith then and said despairingly, "Tell me Julia, do they still hang criminals?"

Her eyes widened. "No, not in Canada anyways. But I wouldn't think like that just yet, William. There's got to be another explanation."

"I pray that you are right."

We shared a look for awhile and then she left again.

I couldn't come up with a viable explanation for the turn of events and because of this I found my sleep to be very turbulent. I had nightmares of getting the noose, even though Julia said they didn't do that anymore. Eventually I began pacing my cell.

Stuck in here, I wasn't going to be able to do anything to solve this mystery. But how could I escape and not look guilty? Not that it mattered, these cells were far better constructed than the ones in my time. There was no way I was going to break out of them. Knowing this, I sat down again and wallowed in my despair.

**Friday, June 15th, 2012**

I had barely gotten to sleep again when George came barging into the cell area.

"Oye!" shouted Brackenreid, "some of us poor blokes are tryin' to get some bleedin' rest!"

"Shut your trap Brackenreid, or I'll shut it for you!" snarled George.

"Ah, I see your true self 'as made 'is triumphant return. What 'appened? Trouble in paradise? Did you 'ave a fight with your boyfriend?"

"This is your last warning Brackenreid! I mean it!"

"Now, now Georgie boy, I'm just 'aving me fun. What's got your knickers in such a knot?"

George didn't respond and headed over to me.

"If you thought that was going to work, you're dumber than you look!"

I didn't respond.

"You're still going down for this, you psycho!"

"I'm sorry George but I don't know what you're talking about."

"Stop freaking calling me that!" he screamed shaking the bars.

Then he stormed out of there.

* * *

Again Julia showed up shortly after him and she seemed to be in only slightly better spirits than the last time I saw her.

"What's going on Julia?"

"They found another body this morning. Same MO, same everything." I looked at her blankly. "It means mode of operation."

"This is good news, isn't it? It proves that it couldn't have been me killing these people."

"No," she said shaking her head sadly, "all it means is that you didn't kill this most recent victim. Now Crabtree thinks you used an accomplice for this murder in order to create reasonable doubt for your case."

"Will this never end?" I asked defeatedly.

"Cheer up William, there's a silver lining here."

"Oh?"

"Now I can track down this bastard to prove he's been framing you all along! I mean, I can't believe I didn't think of this sooner! It wouldn't be that hard to do. All he'd have to do is get a print from you, digitize it, make a latex mold, glue it to his own finger and place it on an old body he had stashed away somewhere."

"Is that all?" I asked wryly. "But why would they be doing this? I don't know anyone here who would hold such a grudge against me that they would go to such elaborate lengths in order to frame me."

"I don't know, clearly whoever it is is a total psychopath. They don't need a reason. Maybe you looked at them funny one time and it set them off."

A thought hit me then. "Julia, do you think the real culprit works at the hospital? It would have been easy enough to get a fingermark off of me there."

Her eyes lit up and she exclaimed, "Yeah man! I think you're on to something! I'll go check this out right now and get back to you!"

For the first time in the last twenty-four hours, I was feeling like everything would be okay.

* * *

"Okay," Julia said several hours later, "I've got a few viable suspects put together. I'm gonna bring them in for questioning and see what I dig up."

"That's great Julia," I said, "but please be careful. This person is highly unstable."

"Oh, I'm gonna be super cautious with this one, William. I'm gonna bring my friend Yannick with me for backup."

"And he's another constable?"

She smiled and patted her holster and I smiled back.

* * *

"Damn it!" she cursed as she walked in again, sometime in the afternoon.

"What's wrong love?" asked Brackenreid. "Upset that your copper friend is nuffin but a no good, low down scoundrel?"

She ignored him and came over to me with bad news.

"It isn't any of them!" she exclaimed. "They all have iron clad alibis for last night's murder! Don't worry William, I'm gonna keep looking! This psycho can't hide forever! Sooner or later he's gonna screw up! And when he does, I'll be ready."

Again I slept poorly worrying about what would happen if this person never killed again (and subsequently hating myself for wishing this) and just left me there to rot. To me it would make perfect sense that this would be the logical cut off point for their mischief. There was no need to elevate the circumstances any higher than they already were. But I was forgetting one simple fact; that whoever was doing this was likely insane.

**Saturday, June 16th, 2012**

The usual George routine ensued first thing.

"You think you're so damn smart, don't you?" he yelled.

"Excuse me, George?"

"Don't play dumb, you jackass! You're lucky you're behind bars, or I'd kill you right here and now!"

"What's going on?"

"Just because you got your accomplice to plant one of my hairs on the newest victim doesn't mean I'm gonna be arrested!" I stared at him wide eyed. "Don't pretend to be so shocked! This was the dumbest thing you could have done Murdoch! You've just made an enemy for life!"

I was too bewildered by the situation to respond and he stormed out of there.

* * *

A short while later some other constables were dragging George into the cell next to mine. Julia was in the lead.

"You can't do this Jules! You guys know me! I wouldn't do this!"

"Sorry, Crabtree," she said, "it can't be helped. We're just following protocol."

"The mouse captured the lion, did 'e?" called Brackenreid and then started laughing uproariously.

"When I get out of here, I'm gonna gut you Brackenreid!"

"If you say so my friend. But I 'ave a feelin' that you're more bark than bite."

The constables left but Julia remained behind.

"Well, this is certainly interesting," she said smirking.

"Damn you Jules! How can you possibly find this amusing?"

"Because it _is_ funny Crabtree. You refused to look at any other suspects...and now you're one of them!"

"There wasn't any need to look elsewhere!"

"If that's the case, then I hope you enjoy your stay." She started walking away.

"Wait! Okay maybe I shouldn't have focused just on Murdoch!" She walked back. "But now it's pretty obvious his accomplice is targeting me on purpose!"

"So you're saying it's possible that someone would target you but _not_ William?"

"Hey, that's completely different! He's obviously a part of this!"

"And why is that?"

"Because he knew all that stuff! He shouldn't have known any of it! And he's a total whack job!" She didn't respond and there was silence for a long time. "I'm sorry okay? Is that what you want to hear?"

"Why yes Crabtree, thank you ever so kindly."

"But now you gotta clear my name Jules! I can't stand being cooped up like this!"

"Cool your jets man! You just got here. We both know it's gonna be awhile."

He grumbled and she came over to my cell.

"What do you think this guys end game is?"

"I'm not sure but he's clearly trying to tie up the current investigation. If we can't trust each other, we're never going to solve this."

"You think maybe this guy hates cops?" she asked.

"It's possible I suppose but I feel like that's not the case."

"Care to elaborate."

"I don't know really, I just have this feeling like something's not quite right. I know I'm overlooking something but I'm not sure what."

"Well, I'm sure whatever it is will come to you eventually."

"Yes, perhaps you are correct." She turned to leave. "Oh and Julia, please keep Yannick close to you at all times."

"No worries, William," she said smiling. "I sleep with him under my pillow."

* * *

Little else happened for the rest of the day. Julia came in a few times to inform me of the fact that they weren't making any progress with the investigation. George ignored me for the most part so there was no conversation on that front either. So I spent the rest of the day pondering over the significance of the case in 1899. I had never been able to solve it and the more I thought about it, the stranger it seemed. I realized then that it had been completely identical to what was being done now, not just similar but _exactly_ the same. Was this just some bizarre coincidence or was there something more to the meaning? I don't believe in coincidences in relation to murder. Could someone have read about the murder in 1899 and then decided to duplicate it exactly in this place and time? My problem with this theory was that the details for that murder wouldn't have been publicized anymore than they were here in this time. However they could have possibly accessed the pathologists report using a computer. In order to determine whether or not this was the case, I had Julia do a search for me. She told me that there were no surviving autopsy records of the crime back then.

So how could they replicate the crime so precisely? The only other option I could see before me was extremely improbable. I now believe that these cases are somehow inextricably linked, that in fact the _same_ person is committing these crimes. In the end was it really so strange? After all, I was here when I had no right to be, when there was no logical explanation for it to be possible. So why couldn't the same person be responsible in both timelines? This might also explain why I was never able to catch the killer in my time. What if he came here before I did? What if he was also somehow whisked away to this place? Was that why I was here now? Was this why I couldn't get back home? Was it my destiny to stop this madman?

Night was upon us once again and once again I couldn't sleep. Figuring out what I did only served to increase my anxiety rather than diminish it. Eventually I drifted off into a deep slumber. Suddenly I thought I heard something and I awoke in a hazy manner. It took awhile for me to get my bearings. As soon as I did I couldn't believe my eyes! My brain was having trouble processing the sight before me. And with good reason! For you see, George was face down on the ground in a pool of his own blood! But this wasn't the most shocking detail! The killer was still present! He stood up and turned to face me. And I looked directly into my own eyes!


	5. Murdoch Impossible

If I thought it was surreal meeting my double, it was another matter entirely when I spoke to him. I doubt I will ever experience anything quite so disturbing and fascinating for as long as I live.

"Wha-who are you?" I gasped flabbergasted.

He smiled widely and said, "Come now, William, you know exactly who I am."

"Why did you kill George?" I demanded.

"Oh, he's not dead...yet. But time is running out so you better call for help soon...or he will be."

"Why are you doing all this?"

"All in due time."

He exited George's cell and walked over to mine. It was then that I noticed the guard on duty slumped against the wall, directly in front of me. He was definitely dead as his throat had been slashed. Then my demonic double took a key out of his pocket and held it aloft.

"The choice is yours. You can come after me or you can save your friend. Which will it be?"

"How about I do both you heathen!" He simply smirked at that. "Help!" I yelled, "Somebody get help please!"

He threw the key through the bars and I scrambled to pick it up. As I unlocked the door, he pulled back his sleeve to reveal a sleek, multi-coloured device on his forearm. It appeared to continue up the rest of his arm and since I saw a similar material peeking above the top of his shirt, I assumed he was wearing a suit of some kind underneath his regular clothing. He touched some glowing buttons and then I lunged at him. He dodged me, waved at me and seconds later shimmered and disappeared into thin air!

I rubbed my eyes to make sure I hadn't been seeing things. He was still gone when I opened them again. What in the world had just happened? I didn't want to spend too much time pondering that question for I had a much more important matter to attend to. I vaguely wondered why the others hadn't woken up as I hunched over George's dieing body. There was blood everywhere and nothing I could do for him. I was about to get up to go look for help when the door to the holding area burst open.

A constable quickly evaluated the scene and then unholstered his firearm and pointed it directly at me.

"Stand up nice and slow and maybe I won't put a bullet between your eyes." I did as he said. "Walk out of the cell." I did and he kicked a pair of handcuffs towards me. "Put those on. Good and now come over here. You're a real piece of work, you know that? If Crabtree's dead, you're dead!" Then he punched me in the stomach hard and I fell to my knees. The constable went over to George and checked his pulse. He came back over to me, cocked his fist and knocked me out.

* * *

When I next awoke I was in solitary confinement. It was hours before I saw or heard anything. Finally Julia came to see me looking completely and utterly defeated. She wasn't allowed in the room with me but we spoke through a small eye slit in the door.

"How is he doing? Is he alive?"

"Yes, but he's still very weak."

"Nevertheless, I was certain he was dead. I'm glad that he isn't."

"I almost believe that you're being sincere."

"I am, Julia. No matter our differences, I still considered him a friend."

"Look, I don't want to believe that you did this but I'm not seeing any other explanation. So I was hoping you could somehow enlighten me."

"You were right before, I'm being framed."

She sighed and said, "That might have been plausible before, William but Crabtree _saw_ you attack him!"

"Yes but it wasn't _me!_ I mean, it was me but it wasn't."

"That doesn't make _any_ sense! Do you hear yourself right now?"

"What I'm trying to say is that it was another version of me! The one from this century."

I assumed by her silence that her jaw had dropped. "You mean, like how we all seem to have a double?"

"Yes, exactly like that!"

"Okay, let's say for one second that you're telling the truth. How did he or you or...how did your doppelganger get in there and then out again without anyone seeing him?"

"I'm not sure, Julia, he simply disappeared."

"Come again?" she said raising her eyebrows.

"He had some sort of advanced technology that allowed him to disappear. He was there one moment and gone the next."

"Okay, you've just described something that sounds like it's from Star Trek!" I looked at her uncomprehending. "You're basically saying that this guy is capable of teleportation!"

"That means to carry distantly, right?"

"I don't know, maybe! But you do realize this makes everything even more impossible to explain to everyone else, don't you?"

"Of course."

"Then why are you so calm?"

"Because there's nothing I can do about my current situation."

"Hey man, don't go giving up on me already! This thing's far from over!"

"I don't know, Julia, he seems to have the upper hand quite thoroughly."

"So what? We can always turn the tables!"

"Perhaps but I'm not feeling particularly confident at the moment. In any case, at the very least I'll know why he did all this while I'm serving out my sentence."

"What?" she said taken aback.

"He's going to explain himself before this is all over."

"How can you _possibly_ know that?"

"Because he's me and I would."

"William, he's an evil version of you! He doesn't think the same way!"

"Oh I don't know about that, Julia." Something else occurred to me then. "How did he knock out the others?"

"He tranked them."

"Excuse me?"

"There's these special guns that shoot out tranquilizer darts, they're non-lethal. Anyways, Boris, he's the guard that was found dead, he had one on him."

"So naturally the constabulary thinks I did that so they couldn't call for help and to make it easier for me to escape."

"Something like that."

"Now what?" I asked.

"Now we find this psycho and prove your innocence once and for all!"

I appreciated her enthusiasm but I had a feeling this was going to be virtually impossible.

**Sunday, June 17th, 2012**

Since there was nothing for me to do in this place, I spent my time contemplating the teleportation device my double had used. Obviously there had been massive breakthroughs in science and technology since 1899, which was to be expected. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would be witness to such things, least of all something that could make a man evaporate into thin air! I have a general grasp of the more complicated mathematical formulae present in the late eighteen hundred's. None of them gave me any discernible insight into what he had done. I don't feel too badly, for the principles involved would be incomprehensible to the most brilliant minds from my time. And judging by Julia's reaction, the teleportation device was clearly ahead of it's time even now.

I'm not surprised that my double would be able to create such a thing. After all, haven't I myself invented many things ahead of their time? I was both dreading and extremely curious to see what else he had in store for me.

In the afternoon I was once again handcuffed and led to an interrogation room. My interrogator identified himself as the chief inspector for the precinct, one Rayland Grimes. A video camera had been set up facing me. Another constable was in charge of operating it. I wondered once again if Julia was behind the two way glass. I assumed that she was unless she had been barred from participating in this investigation any longer.

"State your full name for the record please," said Grimes.

"William Murdoch."

"No, I mean, your real name," he said calmly, pleasantly.

"That is my real name."

"I'm not here to play games with you this fine day. I hope you realize the severity of your situation."

"I do. I am well aware that circumstances are less than ideal for me."

"Okay then, Casper, how did you scrub all records of yourself? I must admit to being very curious about this. I've never seen anything like it before in my twenty years on the force."

I had enough common sense in this situation to realize that it wouldn't be prudent to tell the truth, even if it meant lying to a member of the constabulary. Julia was most assuredly one of the few who would believe the real story.

"I can't explain that."

"Can't or won't?"

"Can't."

"Fine," he said smirking, "you can take that secret with you to the grave. But if you had just told me who you really were, we'd have been able to determine whether or not your evil twin could be responsible for all this carnage." I looked at him hopefully. "Yeah right pal, that kind of stuff only happens in soaps!" There was silence for awhile.

"So let's start with your most recent attack. Please explain how and why you attempted to murder George Crabtree."

"I'm afraid I also can't do that."

"So is that how you're going to play this the whole day? It's going to get very dull after awhile. Why not tell the truth a little? It does wonders for easing a guilty conscience...or do you not have one?"

I realized then that it would be easier if I simply didn't answer the questions at all so I didn't respond.

"Who is your accomplice?"

I didn't respond.

"Did you kill Diana Perlter?"

I didn't respond.

"Did you kill Stephanie Meyer?"

I didn't respond.

"Where did you get the idea to kill people that way?"

I didn't respond.

"How many people have you killed? Are there more than just the ones we've found so far?"

I didn't respond.

"I'm very disappointed in you Casper. After everything I've heard about you, I thought you'd be more interesting. This is how things are going to go down. You're going to stew in your solitary confinement for several months until your trial begins. Then we're going to proceed to lay out all the evidence against you, which by now is quite substantial, and then the jury is going to convict you without a second thought. You'll get to spend the rest of your life behind bars. And trust me, Casper, such a pretty man like you, why you'll be the belle of the ball!"

I didn't understand his meaning so I remained quiet.

"Still nothing to say, huh? You're not as much of a stone cold fox as you like to think. I can see the fear starting to spread in your eyes. I think-"

The door opened then and a woman stood there quietly seething. However when she spoke it was with a forced calm.

"Tsk, tsk Grimes. You should know better than this."

"Greta," said the inspector disdainfully, making a slicing movement across his neck and the constable turned off the camera, "I should have known you'd be working this case. You always do like to defend the most despicable villains."

"Now, now, Grimes, I'd advise you not to say anything you're going to regret later on."

"As always," he said standing up, "it was a pleasure Greta." He held out his hand to her but she deigned to take it and he said, "Come on Perkins, we know when we're not wanted."

The constable tucked the video camera under his armpit and they left the room leaving me alone with Greta.

"I'm sorry about all this, Mr. Murdoch." she said, speaking quickly but clearly. "He should have known better. I can't believe I used to date him. He's always been a sneaky son of a bitch." I looked to the two way glass and she smirked. "There's no one there anymore, your lady friend made sure of it. By the way, she's the one who requested my services. I don't know many cops who can afford them but lucky for you, Ms. Ogden is loaded. No doubt you were going to get an imbecile who can barely put his shoes on in the morning. Instead you get me," she said smiling widely. "I may not be cheap but there's a reason for that. I'm sure you've heard of me before." I shook my head. "No? Well, I don't like to brag but I'm very good at my job. I'm known for winning the hopeless cases. That's why they call me Misses Impossible."

"Pleased to meet you," I said.

"Likewise," she said. Then she pulled out a small rectangular device from her briefcase and placed it on the table. "Do you mind if I record this session?" I nodded and she pressed a button and continued speaking. "Now, Mr. Murdoch, I'm going to ask you some questions. I want you to be completely honest with me. Don't worry, you can trust me completely. I'm sworn to secrecy. Shall we begin?" I nodded. "What is your birth name?"

"William Murdoch."

"Did you understand what I just said? You don't need to use aliases with me. Please just tell me your real name."

"That is my real name."

"Mr. Murdoch, I won't be able to defend you properly unless I know all the dirt there is to know about you. If the District Attorney knows something that I do not, it could ruin my chances of winning this case. So it's time to come clean, who are you really?"

I was beginning to lose my patience with this entire situation so I decided to tell the truth. "You're not going to believe this but I'm from the year 1899. That's why there are no recent records of my existence."

Greta was completely unaffected by this announcement. "Keep going please."

* * *

When I was settled in my solitary confinement again, Julia came to visit me.

"How'd it go with Greta?"

"Very well. She didn't seem to be perturbed at all by my story."

Julia's eyes crinkled and I could tell that she was smiling. "Of course she wasn't. She's dealt with all kinds of cases. I suppose she's going to push for the insanity plea now."

"Yes, the thought had crossed my mind. Oh and Julia, thank you for acquiring her services, that was very nice of you."

"Don't mention it, William. I might as well put my inheritance to good use. Ruby certainly already has. Now tell me, when is the trial to take place?"

"The 5th of September."

"I'm sorry that you'll have to stay in here for so long. But hopefully when the time comes, we can beat this bastard at his own game."

"Yes, I desire that very much too."

* * *

The weeks passed by rather uneventfully as there were no more murders. Murdoch was left in isolation, just like Inspector Grimes had said. In the beginning, Julia did her best to provide him with some human contact. But her job and other duties prevented her from seeing him as often as she'd like, as well as the bureaucracy involved. No doubt the ridicule from her fellow officers eventually began to plague her so that whether she wanted it to or not, she was subconsciously imbibing their words. And so it was that after the first month of his imprisonment, she was only seeing him once or twice a week.

George came by once when he was sufficiently recovered. His only goal had been to verbally abuse Murdoch for as long as he was allowed to stay there. Murdoch endured this the best that he could but was glad that he decided to never return again.

Julia had tried to track Murdoch's double down so that there would be proof that someone else was responsible for the crimes. Unfortunately she was never successful in this task. He was remaining hidden far too well under whatever alias he had decided to use.

Murdoch wondered if his doppelganger thought he was currently in misery. The fact was that he wasn't. He had always been the type of person to deal with solitude remarkably well. Some people just lived in their minds and he was one of them. On top of that, his attorney Greta was allowed to provide him with various things. Mostly he asked for books and the newspaper. Since his imprisonment, he had learned a great deal about this world and the way it operated. There were still some things that he didn't understand, for instance, what exactly his double had done to make teleportation a reality or why The Kardashians were so newsworthy or what exactly an Oompa Loompa was.

It was now the day before his trial was to commence.

** Tuesday, September 4th, 2012**

"How are you holding up, William," asked Julia during one of her rare visitations.

"I must admit that the pressure of my current circumstances are beginning to make me apprehensive. In other words, I'm freaking out a bit."

This was a phrase I had come across many times in my readings.

"That's perfectly understandable. The good news is that you've got Greta on your side so you should be fine."

"And by fine you mean I won't get molested by some deviants in prison? Instead I'll get to bounce off the walls in a mental asylum?"

"I'm kinda hoping we can somehow avoid that as well."

"I don't see how. The shits really hit the fan with this one."

"You know, even though you've been talking like that for some time now, I still really can't get used to it."

"Well, Julia, if I'm going to be stuck here I might as well try to fit in. Just like any alien worth his salt would know to do. I can be like Clark Kent's loopy cousin."

"Right, well, anyways, I'll be back here tomorrow to see you over to the court house and make sure nothing goes awry."

"I take it Yannick will also be escorting me there."

"Of course. And so will his friend Jonny."

"Your back up gun?"

"You know it."

* * *

Greta came by later to make sure I was prepared for the big day. I said that I was but she made me go through my story for what must have been the hundredth time. Anyone who knows me, knows that I am not prone to exaggeration, therefore what I write must surely be the truth. Regardless of this annoyance, it was over quickly and soon I was left to my own devices again.

In this case, I was finishing One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Possibly not the best choice considering my fate could be decided tomorrow, but I had seen a list of the top classic books in the newspaper and wanted to read my way through them. I wasn't too worried by what I found in that tale for I knew most of those practices to be outdated and rather barbaric in this day and age. Now everyone was simply kept sane with the implementation of various drugs, ones that were supposedly less addictive than heroin or cocaine but which seemed to be giving them a run for their money lately.

In any case, that is what my mind was employed on when I had an unexpected visitor. Me. He didn't simply walk up to my cell door. No, he just appeared directly beside me. Understandably I was quite startled.

"Sorry to frighten you, William," he said, not sounding the least bit sincere, "but there was really no other way for us to meet. Hope you can forgive me."

"I'll never do that! You caused far too much chaos for that!"

And then I charged at him but I couldn't get close enough to hit him. There was some sort of obstacle separating him from me that was invisible to the naked eye. From my readings I took it to be a force field. This was confirmed when he next spoke.

"You should be thankful I decided to go with the force field to keep you in line," he said smiling. "I could have used much worse things."

"I'll never be thankful for anything you've done!"

"Funny," he said darkly, face becoming a mask, "I could say the same about you."

"What do you I mean?" I asked confusedly. "What could I possibly have done to you?"

His face became normal again and he said, "Let's discuss that somewhere a little less stuffy."

Then he pressed some buttons on the device attached to his forearm and a few seconds later I experienced the strangest sensation in my life. It was like being ripped apart by a blender but without the pain associated with such a thing. And the next instant it was over and I was in a well furnished room.

"Welcome to Murdoch Manor, William, where the impossible becomes reality."


	6. There and Back Again, A Murdoch Tale

"And where exactly is that?" I asked.

"Out in the country. I find I like the solitude. Besides, it makes it easier to work on my various projects without interruption."

"Speaking of which, how did you afford to fund them? It doesn't exactly seem like you're holding down a day job."

"The stock market of course. I made my fortune years ago through there. You could have been a rich man too, William, if only you had been willing to play the game a bit. Then again," he said smirking, "you wouldn't have been able to build a computer program capable of analyzing the patterns and knowing exactly what to put your money in to. It wasn't even gambling for me, that's how good I am."

"Good isn't the word I'd use to describe you."

"You and me, we're just two sides to the same coin. Depending on how it landed, you could have easily been like me."

"I think not. We all have the choice to be good or evil. You chose the latter."

"No, you chose it for me."

"What?" I said bewildered, "How could I possibly have done that?"

He didn't respond. He seemed to be ruminating on something.

"What did I do to you that's caused you to hate me so much?"

His face changed into a mask again. "The worst possible thing you could _ever_ have done," he said darkly, quietly. "You took her away from me. I loved her with all my heart and you shattered it to pieces."

"What?" I exclaimed mystified. "Who are you talking about?" _Surely not Julia? _

"My mother!" he snarled, apparently infuriated by my lack of understanding. "You took my mother away from me! She was my best friend, the only one who truly understood me. Her death sent me into a downward spiral of depression. I couldn't claw my way out of the abyss. It took years before I could function normally again but even then, I was never quite whole."

"I still don't understand what this has to do with me."

"You know as well as I do that there's a link between our two time lines."

"Well, yes, I've surmised as much."

"This link is stronger than you can possibly imagine. The time lines are connected on a subatomic level. Do you know what that means?"

I thought about that for a moment and my jaw dropped.

"That's right William, it means that when someone dies in one time line, they also die in the other."

I was very glad at that moment that George hadn't been killed.

"But even if that's the case, how is it my fault that your mother died?"

He scowled at that. "Oh I think you know. I think you've known all along what really happened that day but just didn't want to admit it."

"She hit her head and concussed and then drowned in the river. That's not my fault, it was a freak accident!"

"Should I tell you what really happened?" I didn't respond. "You made a mess as usual with the wood pile and then when mommy and daddy dearest got into it again, she slipped on your goddamn mess!"

"No!" I exclaimed. "It can't be!"

"It is, William, I saw it with my own eyes!"

"What?" Finally it dawned on me. "You built a time machine too, didn't you?"

"Are you seriously just realizing that now? How the hell did you think you got here in the first place? Don't tell me," he said laughing merrily, "you thought it was divine intervention or some kind of crap like that? Here's the dirty little secret, William, God is a cosmic joke!"

I ignored his blasphemy and said, "I was never in a time machine though. I think I would have remembered."

"No you weren't in one, that much is true. I designed a special device just for you...and Crabtree. I implanted one part in his fist and the other in your skull. And no you wouldn't remember because I wiped your mind. Anyways, when these two components made forceful contact, yours would activate and send you here and vice versa. I thought such a painful method would suit my fancy quite well."

If I couldn't get back now, it surely meant that he had removed these devices from one or both of us. Maybe he stole the hair from George at the same time he removed the device from his hand? Or maybe he deactivated them remotely?

"But why do something so complicated and bizarre? Why not simply torture me in my own time?"

"Where's the fun in that? I wanted to boggle your mind. I wanted you to wonder if you were dreaming and to question your own sanity. I wanted you to feel helpless and alone. I wanted you to suffer as I have suffered."

"I'm very sorry about your mother but imprisoning me for life isn't going to bring her back!"

"You're right!" he yelled. "It won't but it'll make me feel better!

"This is all very sad," I said quietly. "You could have used your talents to change the world. Instead you kept your breakthroughs to yourself for your own selfish purposes. I mean, why didn't you just go back in time and save your mother?"

"Don't you think I tried that!" he shrieked. "That was the only reason I devoted my life to building a time machine in the first place! But funny thing about time, it doesn't like to be messed with! The universe always finds a way to right itself! So even though I saved her from drowning, she just died in a car crash! And when I saved her from that, she died another way! And another and another!"

If he wasn't insane before then, he surely was by now. Witnessing the death of someone you loved over and over again would have that affect on anyone.

"Because of your carelessness, I can never have her back! So I'm going to ruin your life instead, like you ruined mine!"

"I'd say you've already accomplished that goal."

"Oh, not yet, William," he said with an insane glint in his eyes. "There's one more thing I have to take care of still!"

I dreaded what he meant by that. And just like that he pressed some buttons and disappeared again. I didn't know how long he would be gone for so I quickly took the liberty of scouting out the area, looking for anything at all that might help me put a stop to this madness. There was nothing in the vicinity so I wandered around, eventually ending up at a locked door that led to the basement. I figured that his laboratory was probably down there and my best chance at finding something useful. The lock was state of the art but I had read up on just such a mechanism and knew how it was put together. In theory I knew how to break in. Hopefully I could apply that knowledge for more practical means. I laboured at my task as quickly as I could, praying to God that he wouldn't return before I succeeded. Finally, after what must have been several minutes, the door unlocked.

The light turned on automatically as I sprinted down the stairs. When I reached the bottom, I couldn't help but stand in awe for awhile. There were just so many wonderful inventions present (none of which looked like a time machine though). Eventually I snapped out of my trance, cursed myself for my distraction and searched for something that might be able to negate a force field or prevent his teleportation suit from functioning. I could only guess as to the purpose of many of these inventions so I just grabbed what I could (one of which was a fancy gun that looked like a laser) and hurried back upstairs to hide them so that he wouldn't expect my attack coming.

Unfortunately by the time I got back there, he had already returned and he had taken Julia hostage! In my surprise I dropped everything I was carrying with the exception of the laser gun. She was completely unharmed but he had immobilized her somehow, though she was trying to break free from her invisible bonds.

"She's a feisty one, I'll give you that. It took me longer than I thought it would to capture her. Even so, I must admit to being a little surprised that you could break into there so quickly, especially considering your mental deficits."

I ignored him and said, "Julia, are you all right?"

"Never better, William," she said smiling grimly and squirming futilely. "Unfortunately Yannick let me down and this bastard got a hold of me!"

"Leave her out of this!" I said loudly to him. "Your quarrel is with me, she has nothing to do with any of this!"

"It's too late for that, William, you set these events in motion the day you killed our mothers."

Julia stopped squirming momentarily and stared opened mouthed at me.

"Yes, you should be shocked, my dear," he said. "Your perfect William isn't so innocent after all!"

"Please, just let her go!" I screamed, knowing full well what he intended to do. "You've got me where you wanted! I'll gladly stay behind bars for the rest of my life if only you'll leave her alone!"

"Oh, you'll still be doing that but now you'll get to suffer as intensely as I have!" He retrieved a barber's blade from his pocket and opened it up. "I want you to watch as the light leaves her eyes and know that the exact same thing is happening to your Julia! I want you to go mad with grief as I did!"

He raised the blade and I instinctively shot at him with the laser not thinking about the consequences. I dropped to the ground as the beam shot back towards me. It burned a hole clean through the bookcase behind me. My psychotic double laughed and prepared to slash her throat again. I jumped to my feet quickly and fired off several more rounds at the ground around his feet which also burned holes into the floor.

"You know, William," he said stopping again, "you're starting to annoy me. I think I'm going to have to immobilize you too if you're not going to behave."

I ran towards him, shooting at the ground while he was searching his pockets for something. As I approached, I jumped heavily on the floor boards. He gave me a furious glare as the ground began to give way and we both plummeted to the floor below, which just so happened to be his lab. We crashed upon his inventions, breaking many as we landed and both of us lost our weapons. However, I was the only one to be injured as I hadn't had a force field protecting me. As a result he righted himself much faster than I could and punched me in the face. I dodged him the best I could but it was difficult to manoeuvre as I had broken my ankle. It wasn't until I chucked some debris at his head and it made contact that we both realized the fall had been sufficiently high enough to short circuit the force field.

At that point he noticed the laser gun and went after it. I threw myself at him and knocked him over before he could grab it. We scuffled for some time on the ground before he managed to break away. He ran over to the laser gun again but never made it there. When I knocked him over I had grabbed his immobilizing gun. I took careful aim, fired and he immediately stopped moving but didn't fall over, he just remained in mid stride. I walked over to him and he glared at me.

"Now what, William?" he asked. "You can't kill me or you'll be killing yourself."

"Assuming you're telling the truth about that."

"If you doubt me, then by all means, go ahead, end my life."

"I'm not a murderer like you, I catch people like you."

"Is that your plan?" he said. "You're going to swap me for you?"

"No, I don't think I can even though you certainly deserve it. You could always escape or you could kill yourself."

"Very true, William. So what do you intend to do with me?"

"You'll see," I said smiling widely and making him nervous for the first time since we met.

I left him there and I hobbled back upstairs to check on Julia. She was precariously close to the hole so I moved her a safe distance away.

"Are you all right, William?"

"I'm quite fine, Julia, nothing that can't be fixed."

"Did you kill him?"

"No, I can't do that."

"Any idea how to get me out of this?"

"I'm working on it."

I inspected the immobilizer gun and saw that there was another setting to it. I changed it, pointed it at her feet and fired. She instantly fell to the ground and I caught her.

"Well, that was easy enough," she said laughing. And I joined in with her, overjoyed that no one I cared about had been killed.

However, this whole ordeal was far from over. There were still many things that needed to be accomplished. First and foremost was dealing with my other half. I had read about these cryonics chambers that one could purchase for a hefty price. It should be a simple enough matter to access his bank funds. After all, we are the same person for all intents and purposes. Then all I'll have to do is sign myself up for this service, claiming that I have some sort of incurable disease. I will have to travel to somewhere far away that offers such services because my face has been printed in the paper too many times for people not to know who I am in this place. Luckily I had the means to travel from here to somewhere else quite easily. I just needed to figure it out.

Needless to say, Julia was less than thrilled about the idea of me taking a homicidal maniac away from his trial and judgement, as was I, but I had little choice in the matter. Knowing how unstable he was, he'd be only too happy to slit his throat the first chance he got. And despite everything he'd done, I believed him when he said we were connected in the most intimate of manners. The fact that we both existed all but confirmed this notion.

After ten minutes of carefully examining his teleportation suit, I realized an important fact, that it wasn't _just_ for teleportation, the suit _itself_ was his time machine. This was evidenced by the additional time, day and year allotments beside the coordinate system. Once I had removed the suit and put it on myself, I informed my double of my intentions.

"No!" he whined, squirming. "You can't do that to me! It's worse than death! I've read that it's possible you could be aware the entire time! But there's no way to know for sure since we can't successfully revive people in that state!"

"There are consequences to every action and I'm just doing my part to ensure this. I for one would have preferred to see you rotting in a cell for the rest of your life but unfortunately you're too unpredictable of an element to go that route."

"I promise I won't kill myself if that's what you're worried about! Just don't put me in deep freeze!"

"You can't possibly expect me to trust you after everything you've done, so don't insult my intelligence. I would say I'm sorry but I'm not. You brought this upon yourself. If you had left well enough alone, none of this would have happened."

After I ensured he was safely imprisoned like Mr. Freeze's wife, I went to a hospital nearby to get my foot fitted with a cast. That was completed without any issues as well. Now there was just one thing left to do so I headed back to the mansion where Julia still was.

"Are you ready to get out of here?" I asked.

"Absolutely," she said, "I could really use a drink."

I nodded and I pressed the buttons that controlled the coordinates and we ended up in the alley behind the bar she had once taken me to. No one was around.

"No matter what that bastard did, you gotta admit that this is a pretty sweet way to get around."

"Indeed."

"Are you going to join me for one last drink before you leave?"

"That probably wouldn't be very wise, Julia. After all," I said smiling, "I'm a light weight."

"Right," she said smirking, "I guess you don't really want to drink and teleport. I wonder if they'll have TUI's in the future?"

"Maybe!" I said laughing.

"I gotta say that even though you almost got me killed and this whole experience has been totally insane, I'm still really gonna miss you, William."

"As will I," I said solemnly, "Once again I thank you for everything you did for me. Few would have stuck by me for as long as you did."

"And once again I say don't mention it, William." There was silence for awhile. "So do you know how to operate the time machine function?"

"Not yet," I said, "but I'm sure I'll be able to figure it out."

"Well, I guess this is goodbye then," she said hugging me. "Maybe we'll meet again someday?"

"Anything's possible, Julia. Farewell."

I inputted the coordinates back to Murdoch Manor and waved as the suit began to function, she waved back and the next instant I was there.

I spent as much time as I needed making sure I did this next part right. It was imperative that I didn't make any mistakes when calibrating it. However, this was fairly simple as my double had saved his last journey back there in the entry log. I only had to make a few alterations to it, so that I would go back exactly 113 years down to the minute. The reason I could not go back to a point before all of this happened was that if I did, it would simply all happen again. I took one last look at the devastated laboratory before I hit the command button. Nothing happened in the usual three seconds. I began to freak out a bit but then I heard a humming noise emanating from the suit and exactly ten seconds later I found myself in an empty grassy field. As far as I could tell, I was finally home.

* * *

**Epilogue**

Murdoch knocked on the door and waited patiently for someone to answer.

"Yes," said an elderly woman, "How can I help you?"

"Hello, ma'am," he said smiling pleasantly, "could you tell me if Mrs. Garland is home?"

"Why yes, I believe she's out back in the garden. Who may I say is asking for her?"

"Do not be alarmed ma'am but would it be at all possible that you don't inform her that I am here? I wanted to surprise her you see."

"I suppose," she said eyeing him strangely. "Excuse me, sir but I've just realized that you look familiar. Have we met before?"

"No ma'am, we have not had that pleasure."

"Oh well," she said sighing sadly, "once again these old eyes have let me down."

"Why do you not wear glasses?"

"I lost them yesterday."

"Why did you not inform Mrs. Garland of this? I'm sure she would have helped you look for them."

"I did not want to disturb her with such a trivial matter. She has been very depressed for these last few months."

It pained him to hear this but he continued to smile pleasantly. "Would you like me to search for them?"

"You would do that?" Murdoch nodded. "All right. Come in."

It took him mere minutes to locate the old woman's glasses even though they had been in an odd place. They had somehow ended up in one of her spare pair of shoes that she rarely wore.

"Thank you very much!" she exclaimed happily putting them on. Her jaw dropped when she took a closer look at Murdoch. "Why I _have _seen you before, in the papers! You're-"

"Yes, I am," he said. "Good day ma'am."

"G-good day, sir."

Murdoch headed towards the back entrance of the house and once again felt the brilliant sun shining down on him as he exited the building. He had never been back here before. The garden was maintained impeccably, no doubt Julia had many workers under her employ. He walked out a ways but couldn't spot her anywhere. Then he saw her reading on a bench in the distance, underneath the shade of a large maple tree and moved towards her.

Before he got half way there, she looked up and dropped the book she was holding. She seemed to be immobilized to the spot like the 21st century Julia had been, albeit for rather different reasons. Murdoch walked faster now that she had noticed him, beaming all the while. Finally she seemed to get over her shock, stood up and ran the last little ways towards him.

"William!" she exclaimed jumping into his open arms. He laughed joyfully at their reunion and spun her around briefly. Without thinking about what they were doing they kissed each other!

"I thought I'd never see you again," she breathed afterwards, forehead to forehead.

"As did I. I'm glad that this was not the case."

"What happened to you?" she asked, tilting her head back a bit so she could look him in the eye better. "You just disappeared!"

"That is a very long, very bizarre story, Julia."

"Well then, William, you better get started."


End file.
